Homilies for the Solemnity of Pentecost
Posted by Fr. Aquinas on 25 May 2010 | Tagged as: Homilies
Homilies for the Seventh Sunday of Easter
Posted by Fr. Aquinas on 18 May 2010 | Tagged as: Homilies
Easter Saturday
Posted by Fr. Aquinas on 10 Apr 2010 | Tagged as: Liturgical Feasts
When Jesus had risen from the dead on the morning after the Sabbath,
he appeared first to Mary Madgalene,
from whom he had cast out seven devils, alleluia.
A reading from the holy Gospel according to Mark
When Jesus had risen, early on the first day of the week,
he appeared first to Mary Magdalene,
out of whom he had driven seven demons.
She went and told his companions who were mourning and weeping.
When they heard that he was alive
and had been seen by her, they did not believe.
After this he appeared in another form
to two of them walking along on their way to the country.
They returned and told the others;
but they did not believe them either.
But later, as the Eleven were at table, he appeared to them
and rebuked them for their unbelief and hardness of heart
because they had not believed those
who saw him after he had been raised.
He said to them, “Go into the whole world
and proclaim the Gospel to every creature.”
Father of love,
by the outpouring of your grace
you increase the number of those who believe in you.
Watch over your chosen family.
Give undying life to all
who have been born again in baptism.
Grant this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, forever and ever. Amen.
“Word to Life” – April 9, 2010
Posted by Fr. Aquinas on 09 Apr 2010 | Tagged as: Word to Life
Click below to hear this week’s edition of “Word to Life.”
Joining me on today’s show to discuss the readings for the Second Sunday of Easter, now known as Divine Mercy Sunday, were Fr. Gabriel Gillen, O.P., who serves the University Parish of St. Joseph in Greenwich Village, and Fr. Dan Cambra, M.I.C., the Provincial Superior of the Marians of the Immaculate Conception here in the United States. Fr. Dan will be preaching this Sunday to thousands of pilgrims gathered at the National Shrine of the Divine Mercy in Stockbridge, MA, and during our interview he shared with us some of the points he hopes to emphasize in light of the grace of this weekend’s feast.
“Word to Life” airs live every Friday at 1:00 PM EST on The Catholic Channel, Sirius 159 and XM 117.
Easter Friday
Posted by Fr. Aquinas on 09 Apr 2010 | Tagged as: Liturgical Feasts
This was the third time Jesus had shown himself to his disciples
after he had risen from the dead, alleluia.
A reading from the holy Gospel according to John
Jesus revealed himself again to his disciples at the Sea of Tiberias.
He revealed himself in this way.
Together were Simon Peter, Thomas called Didymus,
Nathanael from Cana in Galilee,
Zebedee’s sons, and two others of his disciples.
Simon Peter said to them, “I am going fishing.”
They said to him, “We also will come with you.”
So they went out and got into the boat,
but that night they caught nothing.
When it was already dawn, Jesus was standing on the shore;
but the disciples did not realize that it was Jesus.
Jesus said to them, “Children, have you caught anything to eat?”
They answered him, “No.”
So he said to them, “Cast the net over the right side of the boat
and you will find something.”
So they cast it, and were not able to pull it in
because of the number of fish.
So the disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter, “It is the Lord.”
When Simon Peter heard that it was the Lord,
he tucked in his garment, for he was lightly clad,
and jumped into the sea.
The other disciples came in the boat,
for they were not far from shore, only about a hundred yards,
dragging the net with the fish.
When they climbed out on shore,
they saw a charcoal fire with fish on it and bread.
Jesus said to them, “Bring some of the fish you just caught.”
So Simon Peter went over and dragged the net ashore
full of one hundred fifty-three large fish.
Even though there were so many, the net was not torn.
Jesus said to them, “Come, have breakfast.”
And none of the disciples dared to ask him, “Who are you?”
because they realized it was the Lord.
Jesus came over and took the bread and gave it to them,
and in like manner the fish.
This was now the third time Jesus was revealed to his disciples
after being raised from the dead.
Eternal Father,
you gave us the Easter mystery
as our covenant of reconciliation.
May the new birth we celebrate
show its effects in the way we live.
We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, forever and ever. Amen.
Easter Thursday
Posted by Fr. Aquinas on 08 Apr 2010 | Tagged as: Liturgical Feasts
Your people praised your great victory, O Lord.
Wisdom opened the mouth that was dumb,
and made the tongues of babies speak, alleluia.
A reading from the holy Gospel according to Luke
The disciples of Jesus recounted what had taken place along the way,
and how they had come to recognize him in the breaking of bread.
While they were still speaking about this,
he stood in their midst and said to them,
“Peace be with you.”
But they were startled and terrified
and thought that they were seeing a ghost.
Then he said to them, “Why are you troubled?
And why do questions arise in your hearts?
Look at my hands and my feet, that it is I myself.
Touch me and see, because a ghost does not have flesh and bones
as you can see I have.”
And as he said this,
he showed them his hands and his feet.
While they were still incredulous for joy and were amazed,
he asked them, “Have you anything here to eat?”
They gave him a piece of baked fish;
he took it and ate it in front of them.
He said to them,
“These are my words that I spoke to you while I was still with you,
that everything written about me in the law of Moses
and in the prophets and psalms must be fulfilled.”
Then he opened their minds to understand the Scriptures.
And he said to them,
“Thus it is written that the Christ would suffer
and rise from the dead on the third day
and that repentance, for the forgiveness of sins,
would be preached in his name
to all the nations, beginning from Jerusalem.
You are witnesses of these things.”
Father,
you gather the nations to praise your name.
May all who are reborn in baptism
be one in faith and love.
Grant this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, forever and ever. Amen.
Easter Wednesday
Posted by Fr. Aquinas on 07 Apr 2010 | Tagged as: Liturgical Feasts
Come, you whom my Father has blessed:
inherit the kingdom prepared for you since the foundation of the world, alleluia.
A reading from the holy Gospel according to Luke
That very day, the first day of the week,
two of Jesus’ disciples were going
to a village seven miles from Jerusalem called Emmaus,
and they were conversing about all the things that had occurred.
And it happened that while they were conversing and debating,
Jesus himself drew near and walked with them,
but their eyes were prevented from recognizing him.
He asked them,
“What are you discussing as you walk along?”
They stopped, looking downcast.
One of them, named Cleopas, said to him in reply,
“Are you the only visitor to Jerusalem
who does not know of the things
that have taken place there in these days?”
And he replied to them, “What sort of things?”
They said to him,
“The things that happened to Jesus the Nazarene,
who was a prophet mighty in deed and word
before God and all the people,
how our chief priests and rulers both handed him over
to a sentence of death and crucified him.
But we were hoping that he would be the one to redeem Israel;
and besides all this,
it is now the third day since this took place.
Some women from our group, however, have astounded us:
they were at the tomb early in the morning
and did not find his Body;
they came back and reported
that they had indeed seen a vision of angels
who announced that he was alive.
Then some of those with us went to the tomb
and found things just as the women had described,
but him they did not see.”
And he said to them, “Oh, how foolish you are!
How slow of heart to believe all that the prophets spoke!
Was it not necessary that the Christ should suffer these things
and enter into his glory?”
Then beginning with Moses and all the prophets,
he interpreted to them what referred to him
in all the Scriptures.
As they approached the village to which they were going,
he gave the impression that he was going on farther.
But they urged him, “Stay with us,
for it is nearly evening and the day is almost over.”
So he went in to stay with them.
And it happened that, while he was with them at table,
he took bread, said the blessing,
broke it, and gave it to them.
With that their eyes were opened and they recognized him,
but he vanished from their sight.
Then they said to each other,
“Were not our hearts burning within us
while he spoke to us on the way and opened the Scriptures to us?”
So they set out at once and returned to Jerusalem
where they found gathered together
the Eleven and those with them who were saying,
“The Lord has truly been raised and has appeared to Simon!”
Then the two recounted what had taken place on the way
and how he was made known to them in the breaking of the bread.
God our Father,
on this solemn feast you give us the joy of recalling
the rising of Christ to new life.
May the Joy of our annual celebration
bring us to the joy of eternal life.
We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, forever and ever. Amen.
Pope Benedict’s Triduum Homilies
Posted by Fr. Aquinas on 06 Apr 2010 | Tagged as: Homilies, Liturgical Feasts
Collected below are the homilies and addresses Pope Benedict XVI delivered over the course of this year’s Paschal Triduum.
HOMILY OF POPE BENEDICT XVI
Mass of the Lord’s Supper
April 1, 2010
Dear Brothers and Sisters,
In his Gospel, Saint John, more fully than the other three evangelists, reports in his own distinctive way the farewell discourses of Jesus; they appear as his testament and a synthesis of the core of his message. They are introduced by the washing of feet, in which Jesus’ redemptive ministry on behalf of a humanity needing purification is summed up in a gesture of humility. Jesus’ words end as a prayer, his priestly prayer, whose background exegetes have traced to the ritual of the Jewish feast of atonement. The significance of that feast and its rituals – the world’s purification and reconciliation with God – is fulfilled in Jesus’ prayer, a prayer which anticipates his Passion and transforms it into a prayer. The priestly prayer thus makes uniquely evident the perpetual mystery of Holy Thursday: the new priesthood of Jesus Christ and its prolongation in the consecration of the Apostles, in the incorporation of the disciples into the Lord’s priesthood. From this inexhaustibly profound text, I would like to select three sayings of Jesus which can lead us more fully into the mystery of Holy Thursday.
First, there are the words: “This is eternal life, that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent” (Jn 17:3). Everyone wants to have life. We long for a life which is authentic, complete, worthwhile, full of joy. This yearning for life coexists with a resistance to death, which nonetheless remains unescapable. When Jesus speaks about eternal life, he is referring to real and true life, a life worthy of being lived. He is not simply speaking about life after death. He is talking about authentic life, a life fully alive and thus not subject to death, yet one which can already, and indeed must, begin in this world. Only if we learn even now how to live authentically, if we learn how to live the life which death cannot take away, does the promise of eternity become meaningful. But how does this happen? What is this true and eternal life which death cannot touch? We have heard Jesus’ answer: this is eternal life, that they may know you – God – and the one whom you have sent, Jesus Christ. Much to our surprise, we are told that life is knowledge. This means first of all that life is relationship. No one has life from himself and only for himself. We have it from others and in a relationship with others. If it is a relationship in truth and love, a giving and receiving, it gives fullness to life and makes it beautiful. But for that very reason, the destruction of that relationship by death can be especially painful, it can put life itself in question. Only a relationship with the One who is himself Life can preserve my life beyond the floodwaters of death, can bring me through them alive. Already in Greek philosophy we encounter the idea that man can find eternal life if he clings to what is indestructible – to truth, which is eternal. He needs, as it were, to be full of truth in order to bear within himself the stuff of eternity. But only if truth is a Person, can it lead me through the night of death. We cling to God – to Jesus Christ the Risen One. And thus we are led by the One who is himself Life. In this relationship we too live by passing through death, since we are not forsaken by the One who is himself Life.
But let us return to Jesus’s words – this is eternal life: that they know you and the One whom you have sent. Knowledge of God becomes eternal life. Clearly “knowledge” here means something more than mere factual knowledge, as, for example, when we know that a famous person has died or a discovery was made. Knowing, in the language of sacred Scripture, is an interior becoming one with the other. Knowing God, knowing Christ, always means loving him, becoming, in a sense, one with him by virtue of that knowledge and love. Our life becomes authentic and true life, and thus eternal life, when we know the One who is the source of all being and all life. And so Jesus’ words become a summons: let us become friends of Jesus, let us try to know him all the more! Let us live in dialogue with him! Let us learn from him how to live aright, let us be his witnesses! Then we become people who love and then we act aright. Then we are truly alive.
Easter Tuesday
Posted by Fr. Aquinas on 06 Apr 2010 | Tagged as: Liturgical Feasts
If men desire wisdom, she will give them the water of knowledge to drink.
They will never waver from truth; they will stand firm forever, alleluia.
A reading from the holy Gospel according to John
Mary Magdalene stayed outside the tomb weeping.
And as she wept, she bent over into the tomb
and saw two angels in white sitting there,
one at the head and one at the feet
where the Body of Jesus had been.
And they said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping?”
She said to them, “They have taken my Lord,
and I don’t know where they laid him.”
When she had said this, she turned around and saw Jesus there,
but did not know it was Jesus.
Jesus said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping?
Whom are you looking for?”
She thought it was the gardener and said to him,
“Sir, if you carried him away,
tell me where you laid him,
and I will take him.”
Jesus said to her, “Mary!”
She turned and said to him in Hebrew, “Rabbouni,”
which means Teacher.
Jesus said to her, “Stop holding on to me,
for I have not yet ascended to the Father.
But go to my brothers and tell them,
‘I am going to my Father and your Father,
to my God and your God.’”
Mary went and announced to the disciples,
“I have seen the Lord,”
and then reported what he had told her.
Father,
by this Easter mystery you touch our lives
with the healing power of your love.
You have given us the freedom of the sons of God.
May we who now celebrate your gift
find joy in it for ever in heaven.
Grant this through Our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, forever and ever. Amen.
Homilies for Easter Sunday
Posted by Fr. Aquinas on 06 Apr 2010 | Tagged as: Homilies, Liturgical Feasts
Easter Triduum Homilies
Posted by Fr. Aquinas on 06 Apr 2010 | Tagged as: Homilies, Liturgical Feasts
Easter Monday
Posted by Fr. Aquinas on 05 Apr 2010 | Tagged as: Liturgical Feasts
The Lord has risen from the dead, as he foretold.
Let there be happiness and rejoicing for he is our King forever, alleluia.
A reading from the holy Gospel according to Matthew
Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went away quickly from the tomb,
fearful yet overjoyed,
and ran to announce the news to his disciples.
And behold, Jesus met them on their way and greeted them.
They approached, embraced his feet, and did him homage.
Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid.
Go tell my brothers to go to Galilee,
and there they will see me.”
While they were going, some of the guard went into the city
and told the chief priests all that had happened.
The chief priests assembled with the elders and took counsel;
then they gave a large sum of money to the soldiers,
telling them, “You are to say,
‘His disciples came by night and stole him while we were asleep.’
And if this gets to the ears of the governor,
we will satisfy him and keep you out of trouble.”
The soldiers took the money and did as they were instructed.
And this story has circulated among the Jews to the present day.
Father,
you give your Church constant growth
by adding new members to your family.
Help us to put into action in our lives
the baptism we have received with faith.
We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, forever and ever. Amen.
Homilies for the Solemnity of Pentecost
Posted by Fr. Aquinas on 01 Jun 2009 | Tagged as: Homilies
The Holy Spirit came down from the throne of God,
and entered into the hearts of the apostles, alleluia.
It’s hard to improve upon these words of St. Cyril of Alexandria. Guided by the Spirit himself, the holy bishop came to understand well Christ’s purposes in giving his Spirit to the Church.
After Christ had completed his mission on earth, it still remained necessary for us to become sharers in the divine nature of the Word. We had to giv eup our own life and be so transformed that we would begin to live an entirely new kind of life that would be pleasing to God. This was something we could do only by sharing in the Holy Spirit.
It was most fitting that the sending of the Spirit and his descent upon us should take place after the departure of Christ our Savior. As long as Christ was with them in the flesh, it must have seemed to believers tha thtey possessed every blessing in him; but when the time came for him to ascend to his heavenly Father, it was necessary for him to be united through his Spirit to those who worshiped him, and to dwell in our hearts through faith. Only by his own presence within us in this way could he give us confidence to cry out, Abba, Father, make it easy for us to grow in holiness and, through our possession of the all-powerful Spirit, fortify us invincibly against the wiles of the devil and the assaults of men.
[. . .]
Does this not show that the Spirit changes those in whim he comes to dwell and alters the whole pattern of their lives? With the Spirit within them it is quite natural for people who had been absorbed by the things of this world to become entirely other-worldly in outlook, and for cowards to become men of great courage. There can be no doubt that this is what happened to the disciples. The strength they received from the Spirit enabled them to held firmly to the love of Christ, facing the violence of their persecutors unafraid. Very true, then, was our Savior’s saying that it was to their advantage for him to return to heaven: his return was the time appointed for the descent of the Holy Spirit. (Commentary on the Gospel of John, Book 10)
Word to Life – May 29, 2009
Posted by Fr. Aquinas on 29 May 2009 | Tagged as: Word to Life
Click below to hear today’s discussion of the readings for the Solemnity of Pentecost with Fr. John Farren, OP, the Director of Advancement for the Province of St. Joseph, and Fr. John Corbett, OP, a professor of moral theology at the Dominican House of Studies in Washington, DC.
“Word to Life” airs live every Friday afternoon at 1:00 PM Eastern on The Catholic Channel, Sirius 159 and XM 117.
Homilies for the Seventh Sunday of Easter
Posted by Fr. Aquinas on 24 May 2009 | Tagged as: Homilies
Word to Life – May 22, 2009
Posted by Fr. Aquinas on 22 May 2009 | Tagged as: Word to Life
Joining me on today’s program to discuss the readings for the Solemnity of the Ascension were Fr. Brian Mulcahy, OP, the socius of the province, and Fr. Francis Belanger, OP, the assistant at both the Church of St. Denis and Aquinas House in Hanover, NH. Aquinas House is the Catholic chaplaincy that serves Dartmouth College. Click below and enjoy!
“Word to Life” airs live every Friday afternoon at 1:00 PM Eastern on The Catholic Channel, Sirius 159 and XM 117.
Wednesday Mass and Adoration – May 20
Posted by Fr. Aquinas on 19 May 2009 | Tagged as: Liturgical Feasts, Parish Events, Parish News
Due to its great success during Lent, we will extend our program of Wednesday evening Masses to the end of the Easter season. Here are the dates and the schedule for each evening.
April 15, May 6, and May 20
7:45 PM – The side door at the corner of Lexington Avenue and 66th Street will be opened (or if the side door is still blocked by the scaffolding, one of the main doors on Lexington will be opened)
8:00 – Holy Mass
8:30 – Eucharistic Adoration and Confession
9:00 – Compline (Night Prayer)
9:15 – Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament
Spread the word and bring a friend! Come and spend time with the Risen Lord!
NB: This Mass will satisfy the holy day obligation for the Ascension of the Lord.
UPDATE: We’ve scheduled two more evenings in June. Mark your calendars for the 3rd and the 17th.
Word to Life – May 15, 2009
Posted by Fr. Aquinas on 15 May 2009 | Tagged as: Word to Life
Click below to hear this afternoon’s discussion of the readings for the Sixth Sunday of Easter. Joining me on the air were Fr. Dominic Legge, OP, and Fr. Paul Keller, OP.
“Word to Life” airs live every Friday afternoon at 1:00 PM Eastern on The Catholic Channel, Sirius 159 and XM 117.
Word to Life – May 8, 2009
Posted by Fr. Aquinas on 08 May 2009 | Tagged as: Word to Life
Click below to hear today’s edition of “Word to Life.” Joining me in the studio to discuss the readings for the Fifth Sunday of Easter were two Dominican friars from the Vicariate of Eastern Africa, Fr. Charles Kato, OP, and Fr. Jude Mmassy, OP. They live and serve in Kenya. During their segment, they shared much about the life of the Church in Africa. They stressed especially its youth and its ability to bring peace and stability to society. Fr. Charles and Fr. Jude concluded their interview with lively exhortations to unity and conversion.
At the end of the show, Fr. Gabriel Gillen, OP, from the Church of St. Catherine of Siena in Manhattan, offered a brief glimpse of the homily he has prepared for this weekend.
“Word to Life” airs live every Friday at 1:00 PM Eastern on The Catholic Channel, Sirius 159 and XM 117.
Wednesday Mass and Adoration – May 6
Posted by Fr. Aquinas on 05 May 2009 | Tagged as: Parish Events, Parish News
Due to its great success during Lent, we will extend our program of Wednesday evening Masses to the end of the Easter season. Here are the dates and the schedule for each evening.
April 15, May 6, and May 20
7:45 PM – The side door at the corner of Lexington Avenue and 66th Street will be opened (or if the side door is still blocked by the scaffolding, one of the main doors on Lexington will be opened)
8:00 – Holy Mass
8:30 – Eucharistic Adoration and Confession
9:00 – Compline (Night Prayer)
9:15 – Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament
Spread the word and bring a friend! Come and spend time with the Risen Lord!
Word to Life – May 1, 2009
Posted by Fr. Aquinas on 01 May 2009 | Tagged as: Word to Life
Click below for today’s discussion of the Mass readings for the Fourth Sunday of Easter, which is also known popularly as Good Shepherd Sunday. Joining me for the broadcast were Fr. Gabriel Gillen, OP, a parochial vicar at the Church of St. Catherine of Siena here in Manhattan, and Fr. Mike Werkhoven, pastor of St. Paul the Apostle Church in Memphis, TN, and one of the personalities featured on Catholic Cafe.
“Word to Life” airs live every Friday afternoon at 1:00 PM Eastern on The Catholic Channel, Sirius 159 and XM 117.
Word to Life – April 24, 2009
Posted by Fr. Aquinas on 24 Apr 2009 | Tagged as: Word to Life
It was a great joy and honor to have Fr. Carlos Azpiroz Costa, OP, the Master of the Order, in the studio for today’s broadcast. Fr. Carlos is in the United States making a fraternal visit to our province. He was in Washington last weekend for the dedication of the new wing at the House of Studies, and now he is visiting various priories and communities along the East Coast. Click below to hear Fr. Carlos share his thoughts on the Dominican Order and also on the readings we’ll hear at Mass this Sunday.
Joining Fr. Carlos to discuss the readings was Fr. Brian Mulcahy, OP, the Socius of the Province of St. Joseph.
“Word to Life” airs live every Friday afternoon at 1:00 PM Eastern on The Catholic Channel, Sirius 159 and XM 117.
Octave of Easter
Posted by Fr. Aquinas on 19 Apr 2009 | Tagged as: Liturgical Feasts
With you hand, touch the mark of the nails;
doubt no longer, but believe, alleluia.
From the Gospel according to John (20:19-31):
On the evening of that first day of the week,
when the doors were locked, where the disciples were,
for fear of the Jews,
Jesus came and stood in their midst
and said to them, “Peace be with you.”
When he had said this, he showed them his hands and his side.
The disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord.
Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you.
As the Father has sent me, so I send you.”
And when he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them,
“Receive the Holy Spirit.
Whose sins you forgive are forgiven them,
and whose sins you retain are retained.”
Thomas, called Didymus, one of the Twelve,
was not with them when Jesus came.
So the other disciples said to him, “We have seen the Lord.”
But he said to them,
“Unless I see the mark of the nails in his hands
and put my finger into the nailmarks
and put my hand into his side, I will not believe.”
Now a week later his disciples were again inside
and Thomas was with them.
Jesus came, although the doors were locked,
and stood in their midst and said, “Peace be with you.”
Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here and see my hands,
and bring your hand and put it into my side,
and do not be unbelieving, but believe.”
Thomas answered and said to him, “My Lord and my God!”
Jesus said to him, “Have you come to believe because you have seen me?
Blessed are those who have not seen and have believed.”
Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of his disciples
that are not written in this book.
But these are written that you may come to believe
that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God,
and that through this belief you may have life in his name.
God of mercy,
you wash away our sins in water,
you give us new birth in the Spirit,
and redeem us in the blood of Christ.
As we celebrate Christ’s resurrection
increase our awareness of these blessings,
and renew your gift of life within us.
We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, forever and ever. Amen.